And the club’s Chief Executive says they had no intention of selling Keita but his release clause was the only reason he was allowed to join Jurgen Klopp’s squad while noting they never expected the youngster to attract such interest.

"We would have never given Naby Keita away if it had not been for the release clause," Mintzlaff told Kicker magazine.

"When we agreed on the clause, we did not presume that only after a few months there'd be a club willing to pay significantly more."